Faint
by Carbonated Angel
Summary: AU. "A moth cannot become a butterfly." Two people are searching for sanctuary in a bleak world that offers none. Can they find it in each other?
1. One

_carbonated angel_

**FAINT**

**.0o0.**

It was nighttime. The air was cold and sharp. And dark. There was darkness everywhere.

The big man was rough-looking. He hadn't shaven in days, and the stubble grew up his chin. His breath smelled of alcohol and cigarettes. Black, thin hair grew on his head like vines, filthy vines that hung down the front of his face. He was ugly, with crooked teeth and a thick neck, but he was alive.

Two boys were with him, tall and gangly; they were not yet men, but they were almost there. Their strength combined was greater than that of ten men, something that many people considered dangerous. But it wasn't a problem, since no one ever went near either of them. They were freaks.

Only the old man had touched them. The older boy called him pit bull, because he looked like one. The younger one didn't say anything, because he would get hit if he did. No one could hit him except the old man, because he was stronger than both of them. Or so he said.

The three of them were inside the dead city right now, walking with their hands inside the front pockets of their long jackets, because it was a cold day. There was no snow, but all of them could feel the jagged ice in the air.

_Where we goin'._ Said the younger boy, looking at the empty windows of a building.

_Shuttup. No talk till we get there_. The old man was the one who spoke. The other one said nothing.

He kept his eyes on the cracked ground, and kept silent. Strike one, he thought. Three strikes and pit bull hit you in your right eye, and you wouldn't wake up until the next morning. It was one of the early lessons that they had learned.

**.0o0.**

She was huddled inside her room, doing her homework. The teacher said that he would give her one more day, when she told him that she couldn't give it in because her father tore them up when he lost.

_He's like that when he's lost_, she had said, _Then he tears things up and I can't sleep._

The teacher had looked at her worriedly, and suggested that maybe he could visit her father sometime. She'd shaken her head and told him no, because then she would get into more trouble again.

So now, the girl was there, squinting at the pencilled words on her English book, and trying to make sense of them. But the truth is, she can't, because she is thinking about other things.

_Maybe you should give him a chance_, her Aunt had said. _Judge Silver says he behaved well in jail, so I suppose your father is a more decent man now._

Aunt never called her dad by his name, only 'Your father', or 'that man'. The girl never asked why. It was none of her business. After all, she was just the daughter. That's what her mother had told her before she left them.

_Keep out of it, Izumi. You're just the daughter._

Her dad lived in the part of town called the dead city. It was a horrible place, and his apartment was also horrible, with its cracked glass windows and the smelly cloth that he had made her sleep on, while he took the couch. She heard noises at night, and sometimes, gunshots. He had told her that it was just the rats and the druggies, and not to worry because they were both safe.

She never really believed him, though.

**.0o0.**

They were all standing in front of the door now. Pitt Bull told the older one to go and get the girl, while he and the other boy waited there. None of them said anything after, and soon, only the creaking sound of the door swinging open was heard.

_We'll sell her_, said the old man_, Don't' worry, Shelley won't care anyway. She's nothing to him. Gave 'er to me for fifty._

The younger boy nodded. He waited for his brother to come back with the girl. According to Pitt Bull, she was a good catch, though a little banged up. She would sell for a couple hundred at the Market. They were always looking for girl slaves there.

_Hey! Let go of me! LET GO--mmph!_

Both of them heard the screams, and looked at each other. Pitt Bull nodded, and fixed his small black eyes on the open door. Soon, the older boy came out, lugging the girl over his shoulder. He'd stuffed her mouth with some filthy cloth, and it was too big for her to spit out.

Pitt Bull grinned approvingly. He took something long and rough out of his pocket, and barked at the younger boy to tie her up. The old man had a rope in his hands. The boy obeyed, taking the rope and binding the girl till she could barely move.

_Let's go,_ said0 the older one, dropping the girl heavily on the ground. She let out a muffled shriek.

_What's her name again?_ He asked Pitt Bull, who gave him a dirty look.

_Izumi, he answers. Her name is Izumi._

**.0o0.**

**NOTE: hey, I'm back:D Kouji doesn't appear yet. Hang on. :) This story will be very short.**


	2. Two

_carbonated angel_

**FAINT**

**.0o0.**

He was walking home from school, scowling as he went. Stupid English teacher didn't even consider grading his paper. The grammar was right, she had said, it's just the content that was wrong. He had written about family. His family, to be more exact. Said that they were broken, but were happy anyway.

The teacher had shaken her head. _Broken families are not happy, Mr. Minamoto._

So then he couldn't do anything about it. It was just a lousy paper, anyway. Not like he cared. The boy let out a low growl, kicking the asphalt road. Stupid day. He bent down to examine his sneakers. They were dirty.

The boy cursed under his breath. He'd have to clean them again. He kept walking.

Soon, his steps lead him towards his usual route, what people there called the left way. The sound of heavy construction reached his ears, and the boy blinked. The whole area was covered in yellow tape, indicating that no one was to pass there. He scowled and cursed again.

Stupid day.

The boy glanced to his right, warily. Looming over the horizon stood the tall, dark shapes of the dead city. He hesitated. Passing through there was the alternative, but he wouldn't, didn't want to. The dead city was forbidden ground, and he had passed there only once before, to visit his uncle.

He fingered the gun in his pocket. Tobias'. Tobias was his dead mother's brother, a detective. He had given the boy his gun before, in one of his bouts of drunkenness. Kouji Minamoto looked at the bulge in his pocket with blank eyes.

The gun hadn't been used yet. Well, maybe once or twice, when he had tried to shoot squirrels and birds before, during springtime. He didn't like springtime very much. Maybe because it was when his mother had died.

Kouji started walking towards the dead city. It really didn't matter. As long as he got home in one piece. He clutched the gun, wondering why Tobias always kept it loaded. There was a full round in there, just in case.

The boy was faced the entrance, and he looked at the mass of darkness with disgust. He stood there for a couple seconds. And then, he went in.

**.0o0.**

The fat woman took the plastic phone in between her fingers, listening to the rings. Her fingernails were painted red, and were grown long. One hand tapped impatiently on the table's surface, while the other rubbed against the phone.

No one was answering. _Girl must be out_, she thought. _Shelley probably took her with him._

She put the phone down, and ran a hand through her mass of curly blond hair. A burp escaped her lips, and her breath smelled of salted peanuts. The fat woman sniffed.

_I'll check on Izumi another time_, she muttered, heading to the kitchen to eat again.

**.0o0.**

Pitt Bull and the boys were halfway done with the walk to Saul's place. Saul's real name was Edward, but he said Edward was a screwy name, so he called himself Saul. He was the man everyone went to for stuff. Alcohol, smokes, crack, you name it. Saul was a merchant. Saul was a salesman, a negotiator, a middleman. He was a jack of all trades, yet a master of none.

_He knows where we can chuck 'er_, rumbled Pitt Bull, watching the girl as she kicked the younger boy's back.

_She's strong,_ said the older one. _But annoying as hell._

_Shut up_ said the old man. _You're carrying her next. Get yer ass movin_.

_You can't tell me what to do. I'll kill you_, replied the boy, without batting an eye. Pitt Bull kept silent after that, but there was a gleam in his eye that worried them both.

The girl stopped moving after a while, just glaring at her captors as they lugged her through the streets. Her blond hair was filthy from where they had thrown her and rolled her in the grime, and her green eyes were bloodshot, because there was no water where her father lived—only beer.

She closed her eyes. They were going to sell her to Saul, the scar-faced man who ate lizards for breakfast. Shelley used to tell her stories about the dead city people, back when he was a decent man.

But that was a long time ago.

**.0o0.**

When he stepped inside, he was caught. Darkness, cobwebs, rats and filth. It was a combination of the inside of the sewers and a haunted mansion. Kouji squinted and tried to see. A little bit of daylight seeped through the wires that ran across the top like giant snakes, so that helped a little.

Now which way towards his place?

He scowled, and a faint breeze brushed his dark hair across his face. It smelled of rhum. He perked his ears up, but only the slurred voices of stupid drunkards and the seething and scurrying of the street rats could be heard.

Kouji sighed, and narrowed his eyes. He began walking.

**.0o0.**

**Heh…not much of a second chapter, eh? Thanks for the reviews. I shall update soon. ;-) Everything will definitely be short.**


End file.
